Will Pfizer Escape Italy’s Antitrust Allegations?

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) has appealed the charge that it violated an Italian antitrust law in the country. In January, the Italian antitrust authority, AGCM, found the drug company liable for abuse of its dominant position in connection with a patent dispute and asked to pay a fine of euro 10.6 million.

Pfizer was found responsible for having illegitimately delayed the entry of generic versions of its product Xalatan into the market. According to Italian authorities, Pfizer tried to impose process control and started litigation aimed at discouraging, or increasing the costs of, the marketing of latanoprost generic products in the country. Latanoprost is an eye medicine usually prescribed for glaucoma.

Pfizer’s appeal is likely to be upheld as the European patent office later found the company’s patent application to be satisfying requirements. Pfizer also did not take legal actions on its own, but was sued by competitors who received cease-and-desist letters from it.

Here’s how shares of Pfizer ended the week:

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE): PFE shares recently traded at $22.34, down $0.05, or 0.22%. They have traded in a 52-week range of $16.63 to $22.80. Volume today was 22,058,812 shares versus a 3-month average volume of 37,966,000 shares. The company’s trailing P/E is 17.56, while trailing earnings are $1.27 per share.

To contact the reporter on this story: Aabha Rathee at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com